Huichol - History and Cultural Relations

Little is known about the origins of the Huichol. Some scholars propose
that in pre-Columbian times the Huichol were originally Guachichil from
the desert around Zacatecas and San Luis Potosí and were part of
the Chichimec culture. According to this theory, ancestors of
contemporary Huichol sought refuge in the sierra shortly before or after
the arrival of the Spaniards. Others believe that the Huichol had been
longtime residents in the sierra, with a strong orientation to the
Pacific coast. Regardless of their origins, it is likely that the
Huichol culture consisted of four or five tribes, each with distinct
regional traditions.

Because of the rugged terrain of the sierra and physical resistence on
the part of the Indians, the Huichol held out against direct Spanish
domination until the 1720s. By this time their territory and population
had been drastically reduced. The Franciscans established centers that
served as missions and frontier posts in the area. Some of the first
Franciscan missionaries established communities in Tenzompa, Soledad,
and San Nicolas, all of which eventually assimilated with the mestizo
population. San Andres, Santa Catarina, and San Sebastián were
the most remote of these Franciscan centers, and the Huichol there
maintained more of their native beliefs and practices. Since the Huichol
area was located along the fringe of Spanish-controlled lands within the
frontier of San Luis Colotlán, the centers became outposts to
protect the region from Indian attacks. The Huichol received a more
privileged status in which they were allowed to have their own tribal
government and were exempt from paying tribute.

Intensive missionary influences in the sierra declined after Mexican
independence, and by 1860 virtually all clergy left the sierra because
of increasing tension among the Indians over land rights. Independence
from Spain also meant the end of Spanish-chartered Indian communities in
the sierra, which consequently opened Huichol communal lands to mestizo
cattlemen and colonists. A ten-year revolution ensued in which Huichol
and Cora joined forces under the Indian leader Lozada to protect the
sierra from further foreign encroachment. Until the arrival of several
ethnographers at the end of the nineteenth century and at the beginning
of the twentieth, little was actually known about the Huichol and their
cultural traditions. The best known of these ethnographers was the
Norwegian Carl Lumholtz, who, under the sponsorship of the Museum of
Natural History in New York, documented much of Huichol culture through
journals and photographs and assembled an extensive collection of
Huichol material culture for the museum.

Shortly thereafter, the Mexican Revolution began, and by 1913 had
reached the sierra. The neighboring mestizos, who had been trying to
invade Huichol land, sided with Pancho Villa. In response, the Huichol
fought under their chief, General Mezquite, who allied himself with
Carranza. Mezquite received help from Guadalajara, and he and his
Huichol troops were successful in driving the mestizos from their
territory. The tranquility in the sierra was to be short-lived.
Christian rebels known as Cristeros were campaigning against the
recently imposed government policy separating the Catholic church from
the state. Those who escaped government troops fled to the protection of
the sierra. The Huichol were experiencing strife between their own
communities. Members of the community of San Sebastián joined the
Cristeros under the leadership of a Huichol named Juan Bautista, taking
this opportunity to invade and ransack the ranches and ceremonial
centers of Santa Catarina. Juan Bautista was eventually ambushed and
killed by Huichol from Tuxpan de Bolaños. During this period,
many Huichol fled the sierra to regional towns, cities, and the coast or
went to live among the Cora. Some never returned to the sierra. Most
Huichol remained neutral or progovernment, depending upon the security
of each one's communal lands. Land-reform issues originating with
the Mexican Revolution had still not been resolved, and, with the
disruption caused by the Cristero rebels, mestizos seized this
opportunity to move onto Huichol lands.

In the 1950s the Catholic church again began to make inroads into
Huichol communities, constructing airstrips and several missions nearby.
Even greater changes occurred in the 1960s when, under then President
Luis Echeverría, the National Indian Institute (INI) sponsored a
regional development program known as Plan HUICOT (for
Huichol-Cora-Tepehuan). This government agency developed projects
designed to integrate Huichol into the mainstream of Mexican national
culture. Airstrips and roads were built linking the isolated communities
to the outside world. Agricultural projects were begun that introduced
tractors, fertilizers, and different strains of crops.

Additional projects focused on improving cattle and livestock in the
communities. Medical clinics and schools were also created, the latter
run by bilingual Huichol teachers.

The Huichol are now tied into the national economy and seek ways of
generating cash income, usually as artisans or migrant wage laborers in
the cities or on mestizo-owned lands. They are in contact with an
increasing number of outsiders, both Mexican nationals and foreigners
from such diverse places as the United States, Canada, Europe, Central
and South America, and Japan. Huichol lands are still being invaded by
mestizos seeking land on which to build homes and graze cattle and
forests to exploit for timber. The Huichol, represented by INI officials
and other nonprofit development organizations, are still trying to gain
legal title to their lands.

User Contributions:

Very intersting, have look for information and never found it, until now. I am very please. My name is Raul Cabral, I come from an old family who once live in Mezquitic, had a ranch called Minillas and family live for about 350 years in thouse lands. Left after the revolution and Cristero uprising. Now most of my family live in California and some in Arizona. Just wanted to let you know that I really appreciated your information.
Raul Cabral